Dick Unger wrote:Talking about current events, trying to learn scraps of information available is EXACTLY what free people do. Sorry certain folks don't "like" that. When we get it "wrong" it encourages the people who have tried to shape public opinion by actually WITHOLDING information to release the same.
There will ALWAYS be a struggle between government and the people, as long as we have a free society, and that's as it should be and must be for our system to continue.
And people will be continually "annoyed".
Dick
It is not a matter of people liking or not liking discussion, it is a time and a place issue. This is a good place for a discussion for certian, the timing and the number and type of people that may run across a discussion like this when someones life is hanging in the balance is the issue. Taking someone apart on the internet on a matter where we were not directly involved, but have a distinct opinion on may be a careless move.
This has been at least my contention from day one, and is not an opposition to free and open discussion, just a measure of prudence. Nobody wants to see a permit holder get the shaft unless that person is CLEARLY and without a shadow of a doubt in the wrong as in just plain wrong. This as well as a couple of other situations that I can clearly recall were not so very clear cut and people were weighing in with their opinions.
It is a matter of someone opening their mouth and removing someones right to remain silent, or give ammunition so to speak to a DA, or an investigator that scare some of us. (Trust me, you can be charged for the statements of OTHERS)
It is a matter of practicality that the less attention that one can draw to something - sometimes that is best. I know that many of you guys dont want to belive em or Goalie when we tell you (TELL YOU) that there are people that make decisions on whether someone faces charges or not look over these forums to get a general consensus.
There are no Good answers here on what to do or what not to do - sometimes DOING NOTHING, and most especially SAYING nothing in PUBLIC is the best policy. In this case, I feel strongly that the DA did the right thing, and the permit holder, while there may be some questions that we would have, and statements that we may want to make about the reported events, justice was on the right side.
The Police are NOT the enemy, the DA is not the enemy - the TRUTH and HOW YOU FOLLOW THE RULES are the determining factors on the outcome. Crapping all over the police, the DA and others is not a help for someone that is facing punishment for what that person thought was the right thing to do at the time.
If it were I in that same situation, I would hope that people that were not there would reserve comment on a situation until the legal system ran its course and I were delcalred a free person. Someo of us just want to remind others about common sense.